Used car guide

2004 Volkswagen Touareg: common problems and what to check

What gets flagged at MOT on 2004 Volkswagen Touaregs, from 491 tests in 2025, plus known faults and what to look at before you buy one.

Small sample: only 491 of these were MOT tested in 2025, so treat the percentages as rough. The known faults below don't depend on it.

491MOT tests in 2025
64%pass first time (all 2004 cars: 58%)
6,600typical miles a year
2.9×the usual rate for sub-frame

What stands out

Parts flagged at MOT more often on 2004 Volkswagen Touaregs than on all cars registered in 2004.

  • Sub-frame2.9× usual
    Volkswagen Touareg
    17.7% All 2004 cars
    6.2%

    Failed outright at MOT: 0%, against 0.3% of all 2004 cars. The rest were advisories or minor defects.

    Rough price £300–£1,000 our estimate

    At the viewing: Look underneath at the frame the suspension bolts to. Flaky rust or holes are expensive to fix.

  • Sub-frame bushes16.2× usual
    Volkswagen Touareg
    8.1% All 2004 cars
    0.5%

    Failed outright at MOT: 0%, against 0.1% of all 2004 cars. The rest were advisories or minor defects.

    Rough price £300–£1,000 our estimate

    At the viewing: Look underneath at the frame the suspension bolts to. Flaky rust or holes are expensive to fix.

  • Airbag warning light3.9× usual
    Volkswagen Touareg
    6.3% All 2004 cars
    1.6%

    Failed outright at MOT: 5.7%, against 1.4% of all 2004 cars. The rest were advisories or minor defects.

    Rough price £10–£80 our estimate

    At the viewing: Ask a friend to check every light while you work the switches: indicators, brake lights, fog lights and reversing lights.

  • Seat belts3.4× usual
    Volkswagen Touareg
    6.1% All 2004 cars
    1.8%

    Failed outright at MOT: 2.4%, against 0.6% of all 2004 cars. The rest were advisories or minor defects.

    Rough price £80–£250 our estimate

    At the viewing: Pull each seatbelt sharply. It should lock and retract smoothly.

Better than most

Exhaust system: 4.7% here, against 9.7% of all 2004 cars.

By area

The share of 2004 Volkswagen Touareg MOT tests where testers flagged each area, as a fail or an advisory. Rough prices are typical independent-garage costs.

  • Suspension
    49% of testsRough price £120–£400

    At the viewing: Listen for knocks over speed bumps, and look behind each front wheel for a snapped coil spring.

  • Lights and electrics
    41% of testsRough price £10–£80

    At the viewing: Ask a friend to check every light, including brake lights and indicators, while you operate them.

  • Brakes
    37% of testsRough price £150–£350

    At the viewing: Look for a lip on the disc edges and feel for judder or pulling when braking firmly from about 40mph.

  • Tyres
    30% of testsRough price £70–£150

    At the viewing: Check the tread on all four tyres, including the inside edges, and look for cracks or bulges.

  • Oil and fluid leaks
    24% of testsRough price £80–£600

    At the viewing: Look under the engine and on the ground where the car is usually parked for fresh oil or fluid.

  • Wipers, windscreen and mirrors
    9% of testsRough price £15–£250

    At the viewing: Check for chips in the driver's view, and test the wipers and washers.

Looking at a Volkswagen Touareg?

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Other years

YearMOT testsMost flagged
2023104Tyres 21%
20221,028Tyres 24%
20211,969Tyres 23%
20201,941Tyres 21%
20192,854Tyres 23%
20181,554Tyres 22%
20173,257Tyres 23%
20163,824Tyres 23%
20154,102Tyres 24%
20143,006Tyres 25%
20132,269Tyres 28%
20121,787Tyres 25%
20111,618Suspension 27%
2010695Suspension 37%
20091,011Suspension 44%
20081,234Suspension 45%
20071,696Suspension 43%
20061,382Suspension 51%
2005927Suspension 52%
2003151Suspension 49%

Where this comes from: the DVSA's anonymised results for every MOT test in Great Britain in 2025, counting tests of 2004 Volkswagen Touaregs registered in 2004. "Flagged" includes advisories, so it isn't the same as a fail rate. How we score